


proved us right (when you proved them wrong)

by phloridas



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Family, Fluff, Introspection, M/M, Pride
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-07
Updated: 2019-07-07
Packaged: 2020-06-23 14:53:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19703662
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phloridas/pseuds/phloridas
Summary: Dan comes home from Pride, but Phil isn't the only one waiting for him.





	proved us right (when you proved them wrong)

Dan is still riding his high, ears ringing softly from the force of all the screaming when he walks through the door.

“Dan? Is that you?”

The sound of his name brings a practiced smile to his lips, a smile that melts all over again when he sees who it’s coming from. 

Behind his eyes, a kaleidoscope of rainbow and glitter and pure delight plays before him. But it’s the massive multicolored balloons and streamers and sparkles (so many sparkles) exploding throughout the lounge that truly makes his heart burst.

It’s all Dan can do not to scream with laughter and run straight towards Phil, falling into his arms and allowing himself to appreciate this normalcy.

But then, from behind the balloons--

“CONGRATULATIONS, DAN!!!”

Face after beaming face pops out at him and through his tears, Dan almost doesn’t recognize everyone. A Gaga song booms out from somewhere in front of him, garnering some whoops from the tiny crowd. 

He should’ve known. Of _course_ Phil would do this. Of course he knew the best way to stave off the overwhelming ache that came with falling back to earth after a day spent in the fluffiest, most glorious clouds. Dan could kiss him right now--yes, even in front of all these people.

To nobody’s surprise, Bryony is the first to tackle him in a massive bear hug. Pink and purple hair tickles his chin and the exposed chest above his v-neck but Dan couldn’t give less of a fuck. He can feel her shaking against him and once she finally pulls away, isn’t at all shocked to find tear tracks cutting through her glittery cheeks. 

With her simple white t shirt tucked into a pink, purple and blue skirt flowing down to her knees, she’s never looked more like a unicorn. And Dan adores her for that.

“Mate, I’m _so_ fucking proud of you. I can’t--I don’t even have words.” Her voice, choked with tears, makes Dan want to pull her into another hug but he stops himself before he can shed any more sequins.

“It’s all thanks to your support, you know.” He means that. Cheesy as it is, he’s not sure he could’ve ever done this without her. Or anyone else in this room.

She just smacks his arm with a “Don’t make me cry again, Howell,” before grabbing a plastic cup from Phil with a grateful smile.

Phil then catches Dan’s eye with the softest of grins and Dan’s just about to reach out and thank him when two brunette heads of curls come bounding into his field of vision.

“Holy shit, you guys came out here for this? You really didn’t have to--”

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world, my friend.” PJ pulls Dan in for a friendly pat on the back, his nails sparkling in the light. Sophie’s the next to hug him, the rainbow fringe from her crop top swaying back and forth as she bounces on her toes. 

“Goddddd Dan, I can’t even tell you how thrilled I was, scrolling through my phone all day!” she squeals. “How long has this even been, like ...ten years? Eleven, twelve, fifteen years in the making?”

“Too long,” Dan sighs, once she lets go. “But also in a weird way, it feels right on time?”

“As it should,” PJ says, just as a sharp _ping!_ draws his eyes back down to his phone. 

Across the room, Dan waves to Martyn and Cornelia, crossing over in two large strides to throw his arms around them both. Martyn’s drink sloshes in his hand and Cornelia sways to the beat against him, her musical laughter filling Dan’s chest with warmth. They’re all wearing huge grins and Dan can’t stop himself from gawking at Cornelia’s bright rainbow halter dress.

“Holy _shit_ , Corn, you look like a walking pride flag in that thing. Where did you even find that?”

“You like it?” She does a twirl, crimson red curls bouncing all around. “I found it online like a year ago, knew it would be perfect for celebrating my brothers in law!”

Dan rolls his eyes, but on the inside, he’s glowing. 

He barely has time to process this all, though, as two incredibly familiar faces appearing a bit out of place in the back corner catch his eye, and Dan’s heart stops for a moment.

The rational side of him says this shouldn’t be such a shock, that he should be grateful they came anyway--and he is, of course. Yet there’s still a part of him that clams up in fear, seeing them in this context.

Yet despite all that, he takes a deep breath, pushes that fear to the side, and offers them both a shaky smile.

“My, Daniel, your Phil sure knows how to throw a party, doesn’t he?” Nana winks before folding her arms around him. It’s not nearly as enveloping as her hugs were when Dan was a child, but it’s warm and soft and lovely all the same.

To his surprise, Dan’s grinning ear to ear when he lets go. “Wow, Mum, Nana, I--thank you guys so much for coming, you know, you totally didn’t have to--”

“What, you think I’d miss my oldest son _finally_ living free and embracing his whole truth? Are you mad?” But his mum is laughing, the pure joy in her face nearly too much for Dan to handle.

Hell, all of this is too much to handle. Almost. It burns in Dan’s chest and behind his eyes and goddamnit, he’s close to tears _again_ and now he has to suck in a long breath through his nose and focus on a green balloon for a few moments. 

“You have heard from Adrian, yes?” Mum asks, drawing Dan back to the moment. “Because I know things aren’t amazing with you guys, but--”

“Hey don’t worry, he texted early this afternoon. It was...really nice, actually.” Dan smiles at the words now stamped in his memory. It’s not like he needed approval from his little brother who was always better than him in every way but, well...it’s nice to have that acceptance and support. He needed that today.

Still, did he really have to worry? Of course he’s had all these people by his side all along. And so so _so_ many more, some of whom he got to say hi to today and countless others who were just faces behind screens, their comments and tweets littered with hearts and exclamation marks and rainbow emojis.

He knows in the back of his mind that support is unconditional. Yet he can’t bring himself to believe this, no matter how often he’s reminded of it.

Perks of being the annoying kid, he supposes.

Then the Gaga song fades into Brockhampton and Dan can feel his limbs loosening already. Blessedly, the smiles come just as easy as the tears, if not easier.

It isn’t until everyone’s left that he finally gets a moment with Phil. They were both so occupied at the party, but Dan doesn’t mind. In fact, he far prefers for this moment to be all theirs. 

“Hey, thank you for this. So much. You know, I think this was exactly what I needed after all that craziness,” Dan says, running his finger along the rainbow glitter sprinkled on the coffee table.

Phil shoots him a huge smile as he snatches up all the drinks. “Of course. I can’t take all the credit, though. This was actually your mum’s idea.”

Dan can feel his eyes bugging out at that. “Wait, seriously? I have to thank her, oh god, do you think she’s even up?”

Phil reaches across the coffee table to slap Dan’s hand away from his pocket. “It’s fine, don’t worry about it. She said your happiness today was thanks enough. She and your nana just had to see you after such a historical day.”

“Oh shut up, it’s not historical, it’s--”

“Were you the one on Twitter today, Daniel? This was seriously monumental.”

“I--was it really?” For the first time that day, it hits him how little time he spent on his phone. Yeah, he was texting Phil every chance he could, but that doesn’t count as _using_ his phone. He’d barely had a chance to scroll through his mentions or even see what else was going on in the world. Maybe that’s why he felt so free.

“It was. Just don’t let it get to your head.” Phil smirks at him, and Dan makes a face.

There’s a layer of love underneath it, though, as there always is where Phil’s concerned.

The music’s been off for a while now, but Dan sways to the beat stuck in his head anyway. He eventually catches Phil’s eye, and that grin is so soft and sweet and wonderful that Dan just _has_ to pull him in, tucking his head into Phil’s shoulder as they dance to a song only in their heads.

In the back of Dan’s mind, that inevitable heaviness is creeping in, but it’s not so bad this time. Maybe because all the buildup was just as great as the real thing. 

He remembers with a smile the hours and hours spent on this very floor last night, a rainbow of sequins spread before him as Phil’s dumb jokes and comments had Dan shaking so hard with laughter he almost couldn’t finish the jacket. Eventually he did, way too late of course, and Phil had wrapped him up in the biggest, happiest hug.

The anticipation may have fizzled by now, but in every other way, this moment feels exactly the same.

And just like last night, he disregards the mess (that’s something post-coffee Dan and Phil can deal with) and dances with Phil all the way back to the bedroom.

Of course he’s grateful for all the love and support he experienced today and the euphoria that came from it, more than any of those people will ever know. But at the end of the day, these secret moments, the time that belongs to only him and Phil, is what he lives for.

Well, actually…

He thinks back to the parade, how much joy he’d experienced in those moments, how he’d felt more _Dan_ than he had in a long time. How the people he was once so terrified of were now the ones he ran over to so gleefully (and thankfully), how they’ve now become an extended family of sorts. How beyond incredible that all felt. 

How he knew instantly he just _had_ to experience it again, in whatever way he could.

Come to think of it, maybe now he can live for both.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! And happy day after London Pride! :D <3
> 
> [Reblog](https://phloridas.tumblr.com/post/186118933746/proved-us-right-when-you-proved-them-wrong) / [Retweet](https://twitter.com/phloridas/status/1147905760522842114)


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